Consistency is the key to clear thinking. How to overcome anxiety, worry, and stress. How to be fearless and enjoy live more. Sharp thinkers look far into the future

Consistency is the key to clear thinking. Aristotle described the
principles of logical reasoning already in the year 345 B.C. Twenty four
centuries later, his conclusions remain applicable. Entities should be
defined on the basis of their essential characteristics. Actions lead to
consequences. Today's events are the result of previous occurrences.
Those few principles govern reality.How to formulate
your long-term objectives

When a man formulates his
long-term objectives, he should strive to write them clearly and break
them down into simple steps. A comprehensive philosophy that cannot be
summarized into a few sentences is of little practical use.

Ambitious
goals require sustained effort, often over a period of decades.
Reducing complex strategies to simple formulas motivates us to attain
intermediate targets. Happiness is the result of preceding actions that
generate slow incremental progress. Sharp thinkers look, at the same
time, far into the future and close into the present.You cannot escape the requirement of clarity

There is no
way of escaping the requirement of clarity. Talking about forthcoming
achievements becomes irrelevant if we are unable to define what we need
to do today. The feasibility of long-term ambitions depends on man's
ability to reduce them to sequential steps.

Mistakes arise from
the temptation to move too fast towards our objectives. Disorganized
ventures fall prey to their own chaos. Without a well-designed plan,
self-reliance turns into doubt and convictions into prejudice. Without a
method to filter out irrelevancies, man gets lost in secondary roads
that lead him away from his goals.Unclear expectations undermine reason

Lack of thoughtfulness leads
to exaggerate problems and blow inconveniences out of proportion.
Unclear expectations undermine reason. Confusion renders tasks heavier
than they have to be. Contradictory values bring about unbridled
emotions. Inconsistent criteria waste energy in endless discussions and
destroys the ability to perform well.

In the kitchen, only
detailed recipes give consistent results. Eating well is the overall
objective, but actual cooking relies on specific ingredients,
temperature, seasoning, and a formula that combines them. Failing to
identify concrete elements of action makes impossible to implement plans
and deprives man of confidence on his own abilities.

Imprecise
plans and performance criteria blind our eyes. Today's random actions
destroy yesterday's creations. Self-inflicted contradictions lead to
failure, anger, and anxiety. A company whose employees render erratic,
unpredictable services is doomed. Never trust individuals who are long
on philosophical talk and short on implementation details.Condense your
strategy into a simple formula

Quality
controls are useless if people don't know what they are doing. Quality
requires clear objectives, purposeful thinking, and continuous action.
If you want to be taken seriously, break down your twenty-year goals
into monthly steps. The workable approach to happiness is a rational
connection between our present actions and our life objectives.

Manufacturers
follow a production formula to ensure that they are using the right
materials. Check-lists permit managers to assess if a worker is
sufficiently trained to do his job. A company's compensation plan aligns
the interests of employees with the corporate goals.

Nobody can
figure out all right answers all the time, but if you condense your
strategy into a formula, mistakes will be self-correcting. Chaos leads
to more chaos, but a recipe can be improved from experience. Breaking
down long-term goals into detailed steps is of critical importance in
business and private life.

For more information about rational living and personal growth, I refer you to my book about how to be rational"The 10 Principles of Rational Living" [Text: http://johnvespasian.blogspot.com]

[Image by mrpattersonsir under Creative Commons Attribution License. See the license terms under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/us]

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

JOHN VESPASIAN is the author of eight books about rational living, including "When Everything Fails, Try This" (2009), "Rationality Is the Way to Happiness" (2009), "The Philosophy of Builders: How to Build a Great Future with the Pieces from Your Past" (2010), "The 10 Principles of Rational Living" (2012), "Rational Living, Rational Working: How to Make Winning Moves When Things Are Falling Apart" (2013), "Consistency: The Key to Permanent Stress Relief" (2014), "On Becoming Unbreakable: How Normal People Become Extraordinarily Self-Confident" (2015), and "Thriving in difficult times: Twelve lessons from Ancient Greece to improve your life today" (2016).